New York’s 2025 Budget: Empowering Legislators to Close Prisons

The budget for the fiscal year 2025 in New York includes provisions that provide legislators the authority to shut down as many as five correctional facilities during the following year. Even though Republicans and some jail guards have voiced their opposition, the step has been made.

Governor Hochul suggested a notice period of ninety days before making any decision on the closure of a facility. Even though members of the legislature advocated for a longer window of time, the budget that was enacted maintained Governor Hochul’s plan.

At a news conference held in January, Randi Diantonio, the Vice President of the Prisoners’ Educational Fund (PEF), stated that “fast-tracking these decisions is detrimental to the staff, it is detrimental to the incarcerated population, it is detrimental to their treatment and rehabilitation regimen, and it is disruptive and chaotic for everyone.”

Because the number of people who are incarcerated in the state of New York has drastically declined over the past decade, organizations that oversee prisons have expressed their support for the closure of prisons.

According to Sumeet Sharma, Director of the Correctional Association of New York, who spoke with CBS6 in February, “Prison closures would then allow DOCCS to ensure that there is sufficient staff, or at least get closer to these staff numbers being full, around administrative, medical, and security,”

CBS6 has been informed by lawmakers that the subject was not extensively discussed among Democrats throughout the process of drafting the budget and that there will be no loss of jobs as a result of the closure of a facility at this time.